Abdominal supporter.



PATENTED FEB. 25, 1908.

M. DONALDSON. ABDOMINAL SU PPORTER.

APPLIUATION FILED JUNE 18, 1901.

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UNITED STATES MARGARET DONALDSON, OF OKLAHOMA, OKLAHOMA.

ABDOMINAL SUPPORTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 25, 1908.

Application filed June 18. 1907- Serial No. 379678- To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MARGARET DONALD- SON, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Oklahoma city, in the county of Oklahoma, Oklahoma, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Abdominal Supporters, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The purpose of the invention is to provide a construction of an abdominal supporter that embodies an elastic belt and lapped bandages connected therewith, including shoulder straps and front and rear crossed sections, that invariably have a lifting tendency andat the same time. exert backward pressure upon the soft section of the body above the hip bones and which in no in stance exert a downward pressure upon the body.

A further purpose of the invention is to provide an abdominal supporter that can be comfortably worn and which will be cool, and self adaptable to all positions of the human body. v

It is also a purpose of the invention to provide a device of the character described, that can be advantageously used wherever such a device has hitherto been employed, and

one that can be used to especial advantage in cases of floating or misplaced kidneys, groin hernia, obesity, tumors, or other abnormal enlargements, and uterine troubles, etc.

The invention consists in the novel 'construction and combination of the several parts as will be hereinafter fully set forth and pointed out in the claims.

Reference is to be had to, the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the supporter upon the person Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the applied supporter; and Fig. 3 is a three-quarter view of a figure and the applied supporter.

An elastic belt A is employed, provided with lacing 10 at the back, which belt may be of any desired width and when worn does not come above the point of the hip bone, and fits closely about the abdomen and is smaller at such point than at the line of the top of the hips, hence the pressure is upward because the resistance is beneath the abdomen, and since the belt does not extend I above the hip bones, there can be no injurious downward pressure. The bandages B and O begin and end at the top or upper edge of the elastic belt A, and pass upward, backward and outward under the arm-pits to the shoulders in their course. They support and press backward the upper abdomen and continue the support begun under the lower abdomen. The 'forward ends of the banda es are stitched or otherwise secured to the elastic belt A, at its front central portion, as is shown in Figs. 1 and 3, and overlap at their points of attachment. The forward ends of the bandages B and O, are made quite wide, as is shown at b and c in said Figs. 1 and 3, and are' radually reduced in width until their normal width is reached, which is where they pass from the front of the body to the rear, as is shown at 11 in Figs. 1 and 3. Through this forward lapped arrangement of the bandages, the bandage B starts at a point inside the top of the hip bone on the left-hand side and passes to the right upward and backward, forming an up er back strap section 12, thence over and a ong the front of the left-hand shoulder forming a left-hand shoulder strap 13; then the said bandage B is carried downward and rearward beneath the left arm to an adjustable connection with a buckle 15 or the like located at the upper right-hand rear portion of the elastic belt A, as is shown in Fig. 2, forming thereby a lower rear cross strap section 14. The other bandage O, starts at a point inside the top of the hip bone on the righthand side, passes to the left upward and backward forming an upper rear strap section 12 that crosses the corresponding section 12 of the bandage B, and 1s contlnued over and down the front of the right-hand shoulder, producing the ri ht-hand shoulder strap section 13 and finally the bandage O extends rearward beneath the right arm forming a lower back strap section 14*, that crosses the corresponding section 14 of the bandage B, and is adjustably attached to the upper edge of the belt A, to the left of itsrear center, the attachment being made by a buckle 15 or its equivalent.

Perineal straps 16 and 16 are attached to the front of the belt A, respectively below the rear buckles 15 and 15 and are received by buckles 17 and 17 correspondingly located at the front of said belt. The combination with the elastic belt of the above described lapped bandages is very efficacious, as for eX- ample, the bandage C gives an upward support under the region of the right kidney, without passing over the fleshy portion of the right side of the body, and the same is true of the banda e B, with reference to the left kidney and le t-hand side of the body.

Thebandages combined may be consid ered as a braceth at is not rigid at any point, being made of webbing, or the equivalent, and the bandages are not fastened together where they cross under the arms between the shoulders or at the small of the back, and thereby comfortably accommodate themselves to every motion of the body. Furthermore the backwardly directed strap sections 14 and 14* pass so low under the arms that there is no tendency to cut or bind.

The improved supporter has the advantage of being easy to put on and take off, since when the belt is laced up and the bandages are adjusted to the body, the su porter can be sli ped off over the head, and subsequently s 1 ped on without unlacing the belt or unbuckl ing the bandages, the only unfastening required being at the front portion of the erineal straps.

T e widened overlapping front end portions of the bandages are particularly beneficial, since they exert a gentle constant upward and rearward pressure upon the upper abdomen and serve to thoroughly protect the same. The strap sections 13 and 1.3 may be considered as shoulder loops.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent,

1. In an abdominal supporter, an elastic belt adapted to fit to the person at a point below the tips of the hip bone, bandages, the forward ends of which overlap and are secured to the upper edge portion of the belt,

which bandages are crossed at the front lower portion of the body extending to the rear of the body beneath the arms, being again crossed between the shoulders and over the shoulder forming shoulder loops, the said bandages being again crossed at the small of the back, means for connecting the front right-hand bandage to the rear portion of the belt at the left of its center, and the front left-hand bandage toithe right-hand central portion of the belt, and perineal straps extending below the belt and connected therewith.

2. In an abdominal supporter, an elastic belt, a rear lace for the same, and bandages that cross each other at their forward ends, being attached at said. crossing each to the upper central front portion of the belt, said forward ends of the bandage being widened at their front ends and gradually reduced to a uniform width, said bandages being of suflicient length to pass in opposite directions to the rear of the body beneath the arm pits, cross between the shoulders,'eXtend forwardly in a loop over the shoulders, and cross a second time at the small of the back} independent means for attaching the rear end of the formed right-hand bandage to the belt at the left of its rear center, and the forward left-hand bandage to the said belt at the right of its rear center, and perineal" strlaps extending from front to rear of thebe t.

3. In an abdominal supporter, an elastic belt of less diameter at its lower than at its upper edge, said belt being adapted to fit the 7 body at a point below the tips of the hips, a

lacing for the rear of the said belt, and bandages crossed and widened at their forward ends, which ends are secured to the upper central front portion of the belt, said band- 7 ages being of sufficient length to cross under the arms between the shoulders and at the small of the back, means for connecting the rear ends of the bandages to the belt at each side of its rear center, and perineal straps carried by the belt.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

MARGARET DONALDSON.

Witnesses:

AMANDA OOoNNoR, KATHERINE ANDERSON. 

